Suhrawardi
IslamicSufi
He rebuilt philosophy around light. Reality is degrees of brightness, and to know is to be illumined.
Suhrawardi founded the philosophy of Illumination, weaving Avicenna's logic together with Platonic forms and the imagery of ancient Persian wisdom. Being, he taught, is not a thing but light, and the universe is a hierarchy of lights descending from the Light of Lights, with knowledge itself a kind of seeing. He insisted that reason and mystical vision must travel together, that the philosopher who has not tasted illumination is incomplete. He was executed at Aleppo around the age of thirty-six, which earned him the title the Murdered Master, and his school shaped Persian thought for centuries after.
Places
Ideas
Words
“Being is light, and all things are but degrees of its radiance.”
Works
Life & Moments
Born in Persia
Born in northwestern Persia, he traveled widely in search of teachers before settling in Syria.
Executed at Aleppo
Put to death around the age of thirty-six for his teachings, earning him the title the Murdered Master.
Influence
Influenced by
- Ibn Sina
Suhrawardi built his philosophy of illumination on Avicenna's logic before turning it toward light and vision.
